This time of the year can be a very stressful time for parents and students as they consider, discuss, negotiate and approve possible areas of study for Year 11 and Year 12. For some students, they have a very clear understanding of what future pathway they wish to pursue, but for many, the perennial question of “what do you want to do when you finish school?” leads to more confusion and anxiety when the student doesn’t really know what they want to do.
Over the last three weeks parents and students have engaged in a number of activities to help support this process, and to alleviate some of the uncertainty:
- Online Parent information sessions
- Subject Expo for Year 10s and 11s last Friday
- Individual course counselling sessions this week
The Subject Expo was an opportunity for students to chat with teachers and Year 12 students about the different subjects for study in the Senior School. Two new subjects were showcased – Nutrition and Performing Arts – while many of our existing subjects highlighted some of the key learning from these areas of study.
While supporting your senior school student to make decisions for their future pathways, consider the following questions, which arise from the Japanese concept of Ikigai, which means “that which gives your life worth, meaning, or purpose.”
- What do you love?
- What are you good at?
- What does the world need?
- What can you get paid for?
This article from TheConversation.com is also a helpful read.
A reminder that the final deadline for Senior School Web Preferences is Monday 22 August at 9am.
Even though it may seem that “urgent” decisions need to be made, the most important thing to remember is that learning, and achieving one’s chosen goals, occurs over a lifetime. For our Senior School students, this step is just another in this journey.
Joanne Wegener
Senior School Learning Leader
